Debts account for 72% of GDP: minister

ISLAMABAD: Coupled with the ballooning public debt, Pakistan economy’s “twin deficits”— fiscal and current account—are posing serious challenge to the economy. Currently, the country’s debt to GDP ratio is 72 pc which could go up to 74pc by end this fiscal year, Finance Minister Shamshad Akhtar said on Wednesday.

“To cope with these challenges, we need effective, sensible and high-powered economic management,” she said.

Management of huge public debt would be a challenge for the upcoming government as it is critically linked to stability of economic growth.

Fiscal deficit and current account deficit is a challenge. “What we have to do is to really have real sector economic growth very fast, diversify our exports, get good business environment institutionally and politically, then we would be able to attract [international] inflows,” Minister for Finance, Revenue and Economic Affairs Dr Shamshad Akhtar said here on Wednesday.